


The Switch

by MaladaptiveDaydreamer



Category: Avengers, Doctor Strange - Fandom, Hulk - Fandom, MCU, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers, The Incredible Hulk, Thor (Movies), Thor - Fandom
Genre: Also Helen Cho is still alive, Hospitalization, Humor, Light Angst, M/M, Mind Switch, slightly comedic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-19
Updated: 2019-09-19
Packaged: 2020-10-24 07:44:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20702399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaladaptiveDaydreamer/pseuds/MaladaptiveDaydreamer
Summary: After being hit by a mysterious laser whilst battling Hydra, Bruce Banner and his lovely green alter ego switch minds, much to the dismay of his boyfriend, Thor.“So, in conclusion, that is probably why our dear friend thinks he’s an 8—no 9—foot green rage monster.”





	The Switch

Thor couldn’t stand it anymore.

The prince of Asgard launched himself out of his chair faster than a speeding bullet and started towards the door when its doorknob suddenly turned and flung the it open, revealing Dr. Helen Cho, who seemed very unsurprised by Thor’s sudden appearance.

“Thor, how many times do I have to tell you” The doctor reprimanded the god as she scribbled down a few notes on her notepad, causing the man to shuffle his feet in shame, “he’s still unconscious, and will probably be for the next few days.”

“Still? Are you certain?” As if Thor didn’t already know this. As if he hadn’t spent the past several hours constantly checking in on the status of his boyfriend.

The doctor sighed impatiently. “The last time I checked, which was literally just a minute ago, yes, he is.”

“Oh,” Thor said, clearly disappointed. He pouted as he stepped back and slowly shuffled back towards the chair he’d been sitting in for the past several hours/days.

Dr. Cho sighed even louder as she finally gave in. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt for you to come in and see him now, as long as you-“

She had him at “I suppose.” The son of Odin instantly spun around and furiously sprinted into the other room as though somebody had just told him the room was full of fresh cinnamon sugar pop tarts ready for him to eat. Noticing the disapproving look on the doctor’s face, he ever so gently closed the door behind him.

When he turned around and saw Bruce lying in the hospital bed, his heart skipped a beat. He had rarely ever seen him in such a condition before.

He quietly plopped down in the chair next to his bed and scooted it a few inches forward so that he could be as close to his Bruce as possible.

Thor silently gazed at the sleeping scientist who was peacefully snoring in his hospital bed. His worried eyes couldn’t help but be drawn to other man’s tired, pale, face, which, for some reason, had little splotches of green sprinkled on it.

Thor was concerned. Those spots had never been there before, even after all of his previous de-transformations. 

What was even more troubling was the fact that Bruce had never taken this long to recover from hulking out before. Normally, after becoming himself again, he would only sleep for a couple of hours or so and then he’d be back to normal. But this time, for some reason, something was different. Something had gone wrong, and Thor desperately wanted to figure out what. 

Oh, if only he possessed Heimdall’s all seeing eyes or some of his mother’s healing powers so he could magically make all of his lover’s pain go away.

He always hated never being able to help ease Bruce’s pain.

He growled in frustration, feeling helpless for the first time in his 3000 years of life. Usually he could simply destroy all of his problems with his hammer and be done with them. But not this time. This time he couldn’t punch or hit his way out of this situation. He sighed. If only he were the god of healing or medicine, or literally anything other than thunder, then maybe he probably wouldn’t be feeling so useless at the moment.

He was sitting in a chair no more than 2 inches away from Bruce’s bedside, gently grasping his boyfriend’s warm, green speckled hand as he vigilantly watched over him almost as though at any moment someone would suddenly burst into the room and attempt to injure him even more.

Another trickle of sweat dropped down from Bruce’s damp forehead as the sickly man groaned in his sleep, much to his boyfriend’s dismay.

Thor couldn’t stand seeing his lover in such a state. It was all he could do to keep from pounding on Tony’s door and demanding him to explain what happened to his boyfriend.

“Look, buddy, I’m doing everything I can for Bruce right now, I really am. Heck, I’m still trying to figure out what’s wrong with him.” The mechanic exasperatedly told the prince for the 5th time that week. “Besides, this is Bruce we’re talking about here. He’s gonna be just fine.” 

Thor hoped more than anything that he was right. Then he shook his head, feeling stupid for having doubts. Of course he’d be okay. His superhuman healing abilities practically guaranteed it.

But still, those spots shouldn’t be there.

The god of thunder softly caressed his lover’s hand as he listened to the sound of his ragged breaths that were slightly too short and fast for Thor’s comfort. He sighed as he mentally scolded himself for not being able to protect Bruce when he needed him.

He then noticed most of the veins in Bruce’s hands were a brilliant shade of jade, as well as the ones leading up his arm. He furrowed his brows in concern. Why was this happening to him? How was this happening to him?

Thor layed his head down next to Bruce’s hand to ponder these questions.

A few hours later, Bruce groaned and shifted his body in bed, causing a sleepy Thor to bolt upright in his seat.

“Bruce?” Thor scooted back and released his hand to give him space.

He watched as the scientist slowly came to. His eyelids began to slowly flutter open. “T-thor?” He muttered groggily, still half asleep.

For a moment, Thor could have sworn his voice was someone elses. It sounded as though it was an octave deeper than usual. 

Thor was so relieved to see Bruce conscious, he almost didn’t care.

“Oh, Bruce,” he sighed with relief, “Thank the stars you’re alright! It’s been days. I was beginning to worry that you would never wake again.” Thor smiled for the first time since the accident. He was so happy that at first he didn’t seem to notice that the other man’s irises now had a light greenish tint to them.

Bruce grunted as he sat up and stretched. He almost looked as though he’d rather still be asleep. He scratched his head of messy chocolate curls as he looked around the room with a confused expression on his face. 

“Bruce? What’s wrong? Are you okay? Should I call a doctor?” Thor saw his expression and instantly began worrying about possible injuries he might have sustained. What if he had a concussion, or worse, amnesia? Was that why he had that lost, confused look in his eyes?

The doctor simply grunted in response as he started to make his way out of his bed.

Confused and concerned, Thor stood up and placed one of his large, beefy hands on his boyfriend’s chest to stop him and gently pushed him back into bed, much to the other man’s frustration. “Bruce, what are you doing? You still need to rest and recover.” Maybe he should call the doctor…

“Unggh,” was all Bruce could manage to grunt out before immediately trying to escape his bed again, pushing his body against Thor with impressive force. “Hulk want to leave now.”

“Wha-“ Thor stumbled backwards from the surprisingly strong force of Bruce’s push against the desk behind him, accidentally knocking down some delicate objects onto the floor, which shattered on impact. Before he could blink, Bruce lept out of the bed and looked about ready to tackle him when all of a sudden, the door to the room flung open, revealing a very startled Tony Stark who was holding a get-well soon balloon with an iron man helmet on the front of it in his left hand and a red and gold mug that also had his face on it in the other.

The billionaire’s right eyebrow rose slightly as his curious eyes scanned the scene that was currently unfolding before him.“Uh, should I come back later, or-“

Before he could finish, Bruce turned around and made a break for the door. However, he was promptly tackled to the ground by Thor, who still didn’t know what on earth had gotten into his boyfriend.

“So, I take it this isn’t just a lover’s quarrel?”

Thor would’ve glared at him for joking at his situation but he had his hands full trying to hold his lover still. “Now is not the time for one of your terrible jokes, Stark!” 

Tony quickly put down the balloon and mug as he awkwardly sauntered in the room, unsure of what to do. “Okay, so, tell me, what exactly is happening here? Has Bruce finally decided to lose his cool? Or have you just told him you two are donezo?”

“JUST GET THE DOCTOR!”

Tony nodded. “Okay, okay!” He rushed out of the room.

“So, please tell me again why you thought it was a good idea to not immediately inform me that Dr. Banner was conscious.” Dr. Helen Cho stared disapprovingly at Thor, who was staring at the floor for the 2nd time that day in shame. Tony was standing next him, being serious so that he wouldn’t get griped at as well.

Meanwhile, Bruce was fast sleep back in his bed, having been sedated by the doctor with a couple of tranquilizers. 

“In his defense,” Tony started,” he is an alien from outer space, so he probably just didn’t know-“ Tony shut his mouth when he saw the look on the doctor’s face.

“I’m not interested in hearing any excuses. You should’ve known better. You both should have.” She glared at them before jotting down some more notes on her notepad.

Before Tony could open his mouth to protest, she spoke again, this time just to Thor. “However, I have to ask, what exactly did you do to provoke such a response?”

“For the last time, I didn’t do anything, I swear by Odin’s beard!” Thor defended himself. He turned and looked at his sleeping Bruce. “I’m not sure what happened, exactly. All I did was walk in and wait for him to wake up, and when he did, it was like he suddenly turned savage. Like,-“

“Like he hulked out?” Tony suggested.

Thor nodded, but then shook his head. “Well, yes, but actually no.” Thor scratched his head, trying to recollect the series of events that recently transpired. “Although, it is true that he did at one point refer to himself as Hulk for some reason…” 

Tony snapped his fingers. “Ah, so that’s what happened. I get it now.” 

Both Thor and Dr. Cho looked at Tony inquisitively. 

Thor was confused. “What do you mean?”

The mechanic was eager to explain. “Okay, so, you know when we had that big battle with Hydra a week ago?”

Thor nodded. How could he forget? He was practically the only Avenger besides Bruce who actually contributed in their victory against the evil organization.

“Also, remember when Bruce—er—Hulk was hit by one of their flashy lasers?”

Again, Thor nodded.

“Well, it turns out, according to my research and also my vast intellect-“ Both Thor and Dr. Cho rolled their eyes. “-the machine that emitted that laser was a gamma dampener, which means that since it dampened gamma radiation, Bruce should have immediately reverted back into himself when he was hit, since he’s basically a walking, talking gamma fountain. However, when you, Thor,” he pointed to him, “summoned that lightning bolt and chucked it at the Hydra agents who were operating the machine, it must have caused the dampener to malfunction right when it shot that blast at Hulk, which then in turn, instead of simply turning the Hulk back into Bruce, it, in a sense, turned Bruce into the Hulk.”   
Tony cleared his throat when he finished. “So, in conclusion, that is probably why our dear friend thinks he’s an 8—no 9—foot green rage monster.”

“So, all of this is my fault, then. It’s because of me and my actions that my boyfriend is in this state.” He gestured towards the bed, where Bruce continued to sleep peacefully.

Tony pondered the statement for a few moments before replying. “Not to be harsh, but yeah, pretty much.” He stopped when he saw the sad, guilty expression on Thor’s face. “But don’t worry about it. Everyone makes mistakes. Even me, occasionally.” He brought out his cell phone out of his pocket. “Besides, I think I know a guy who could fix this mess.”

Thor sniffled. “Really? Who?”

The mechanic smirked as he dialed in a specific combination of numbers on his phone. “Oh, just someone who has experience in dealing with forces beyond anyone’s control.” As he dialed the last number, suddenly, a swirling orange portal appeared in the room, startling the doctor.

“What on earth-“

“Relax, doc. Don’t you recognize a fellow doctor when you see him?” Tony strolled towards the portal. “Hi, honey! Thanks for coming in on such short notice, I really, really appreciate it.”

Suddenly, the portal disappeared, and in it’s place stood a very tired bearded man in a strange red cloak that flowed elegantly behind him in a way as though he was still walking outside on a slightly windy afternoon.

He sighed. “Tony, you do realize that I have to perform surgery in less than 2 hours, right? Whatever this is, it’s gotta be quick, or else I’ll just have to find another job.”

Tony kissed him on the cheek. “That’s why I love you, babe. Always so willing to help.” He then turned around. “Dr. Cho, meet my fiancé, Doctor Strange. Thor, well, you already know him, so no introduction necessary.” 

After the doctors shook hands and greeted each other, they got down to business.

Thor, doubtful of the wizard’s abilities, walked over to Tony and whispered to him.

“Stark, are you sure he can fix him? I thought he only meddled with magic, not matters of the mind. Perhaps we should’ve gotten —what was her name again— scarlet fever to help us instead, since she, you know, actually has mind melding abilities.”

Tony huffed, annoyed that Thor had dared to question not only his reliability but also his future husband. “Thor, this is Stephen Strange we’re talking about. The keeper of the Time Stone. If he can save the world from an inter-dimensional demon named Dormammu, I’m sure restoring someone’s mind is a piece of cake for him.”

Thor sighed. “Alright, then, if you are certain that he can help, then I believe you. But hear this,” his tone suddenly turned threatening, “if he somehow manages to worsen his condition, I will hold you personally responsible, and will not hesitate to make you feel my wrath.”

Tony laughed nervously before inching his way back to his fiancé. After explaining the situation to him, the doctor simply nodded and walked towards Bruce’s bed.

“So, this is the guy, right?”

“Well, obviously. Who else could it be?” Thor wanted to retort, but he stopped himself, barely. 

“Yes, my buddy Bruce here needs a little help remembering who he is.” Tony leaned against the wall next to Bruce’s head. 

“Your buddy? You mean your ex? Didn’t you tell me you two used to date?” Strange asked in a definite not jealous way.

Tony shifted uncomfortably. “Well, yes, but that was back in 2012 when we were the only sane people on the team.” This remark earned him a glare from Thor. “Obviously, we didn’t work out, which is why we’re just science bros now, and nothing more.”

Thor nervously wondered if all this talk of Tony and Bruce’s dating history would have a negative impact on Strange’s healing abilities.

As if reading his mind—probably because he was—the surgeon nodded understandably. “Don’t worry, I understand. There’s nothing wrong with having exes.”

Thor suddenly felt like he could finally breathe again.

“Okay, so, what I’m going to do is perform a healing spell.” He explained. “It’s going to look kinda weird, so bear with me.” He walked over and stood at the front of Bruce’s bed. He began to make weird hand gestures as he muttered strange words Thor couldn’t make out. He then walked over to Bruce and placed his pointer finger on his forehead.

And Thor though Loki’s sorcery was strange.

As the doctor moved his finger in a circular motion, a bright orange circle appeared out of nowhere. The doctor then placed two fingers on opposite sides of the circle and brought them back together so they were touching, closing the circle and finishing the spell.

“That’s it? That’s all you had to do?” Dr. Cho was dumbstruck.

Doctor Strange laughed. “Well, yeah, that’s the thing about magic; it’s usually short, simple, and to the point. However, though,” he paused and thought for a moment, “to make sure the spell worked, we’ll need to wake him up.” He then proceeded to perform another short spell that worked similar to the previous one. Except this time, he simply tapped Bruce’s forehead.

A few seconds later, the scientist began to come to. His eyes fluttered open, and Thor was delighted to see that they were amber instead of emerald. He quickly rushed to the bedside and took his hand. “Bruce? Are you back to being you again?” His voice trembled.

The scientist yawned as he started to sit up. A few seconds later, he was able to finally function normally. “Uh, what are you talking about? And why are there so many people staring at me?”

Overjoyed, Thor kissed his lover on the cheek and wrapped him in a bearhug so tight, Bruce thought his lungs would collapse. When he let go, Bruce gasped, grateful to be able to breathe normally again. “What was that for, Thor?”

Thor smiled. “Oh, just because.”

Tony turned to his fiancé and pouted. “Why don’t you ever hug me like that?”

The doctor sighed. “Well, you never ask!”

Meanwhile, Dr. Cho was in the back of the room, still taking the scene in.

“Well, I’d better be off, people don’t just operate on themselves, you know.” The sorcerer promptly kissed Tony goodbye before disappearing in an orange swirling portal.

“What a man,” Tony sighed dreamily.

Bruce looked around the room, still very confused. “Uh, can someone please explain what exactly is going on here?”

Tony was more than happy to. “Well, to sum it all up, you were hit by a laser that basically made you switch minds with your giant green alter ego and so we used magic to fix you. Does that answer your question?”

Bruce seemed more confused than ever. “So, I was in the Hulk’s body?”

Tony laughed. “No, he was actually in yours, but I would’ve paid millions of dollars to see that!”

“Ow,” Bruce put his hand on his head. “I guess that’s why I have such an awful headache, huh?” He lied back down in bed.

Thor stroked his lover’s fingers. “Don’t you worry, Bruce. You can have all the time you need to rest and recover.”

Bruce smiled weakly at his loving boyfriend, truly grateful to have one person in his life he could always depend on to make him feel better.


End file.
